Aerial and like vessel.



G. s. DODMAN. Y AERIAL AND LIKE VESSEL,

APPUCATON FILED JULY 1 7| 1914.

Patented June 4 SHEETS-SHEET l.

G. s. Donn/IAN. AERIAL AND LIKE VESSEL.

APPLICATION FILED JULY I 7, 1914.

Patented J une- 22, 1915.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

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G. S. DODMAN.

AER|AL-AND LIKE VESSEL.

APPLICATION FILED JULY Y 7| 1914.

Patented June 22, 1915.

4 SHEETS-SHEET 3.

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AERIAL AND LIKE VESSEL.

APPLICATION FILED JULY l 1. 1 9 x 4.

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S ATT l@.

GEORGE SUTHERLAND DODMAN, OF LIVERPOOL, ENGLAND.

AERIAL AND LIKE vnssEL.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented June 22j, 1915.

Application filed July 17, 1914. Serial N0. 851,549.

engine or engines and Propellers for propel ing them, and receive their buoyancy wholly or partly from a` gas lighter than air; and the object of the inventionis generally to provide improvements inconnecvtion with .this class of airfship.

The invention, further, hasY reference to f that special type of air-ship which is di- '20 vided up into a plurality of sections, with chambers between them; andthe whole is comprised within. an outer frame, made'up. primarily of` lbngitudinal, circumferential or transverse framework, with an outer 'covering or skin.- In cross section, the ship in general form is more or less of horse-shoe shape; and the space between the two corners which come att-helower parts or Aheels of'l the shoe shape--which 'ofcourse eis closed-is concave, c'. 6.,'curved' upward, the lower corners being themselves round. The ship is without platforms, rooms or projections of an analogous kind below its body proper, and is constructed and adapted to '35 take to the water and lioat upon it, if and,

4when desired.` Each of 'the two corners in the section of the ship constitutes as it were,

a keel forel and aft; and a water ballast tankor tanks may be disposed in them, so

` .as to give the vessel stability whenmsnpported either wholly or partially when lying 'on the water; and oil fuel store tanks may be placed above or alongside these water tanks, in the chambers between the sections.

4 5 f .lhe craft therefore, constitutes a hydrof aerial ship.

"The air-ship is provided with a transverse longitudinal or fore and aft deck, say about the middle, and it wil-l also have vertical divisions longitudinally, so that in the main section through the ship, there will be four gas envelops, one in each quarter. Between each section there is a chamber or space-relatively'narrow-which serves as a' 55 chamber for i passengers propelling engines offthe ship, guns, provisions, and so forth;

and the said chamber beneath andabove the deck are disposed so that None, say that in the lower half of the ship, as regardsvthe transverse plane, will be at a point midway between the transverse planes in which two of .thel sections of lhe chambers in the upper part of the ship lie. v

In the saine plane asv th Ichambers between the sections, and respectively above and below these chambers inthe lower and upper half of the ship, there are ballonnets y which are acted upon by the gas envelops, contained in the main buoyancy sections of the vessel; so that they serve to collapse, and thus allow for the expansion of the gas in the gas bags by heat, as the temperature' varies, and to compensate for the expansion and contraction of such gas as it becomes heated-or cooled. And within the vertical divisions, which may be frames spaced.

apart, there will be a passage formed above the horizontal--andpreferably concavedeck, and also one in the lower pdrtxion of the lower division, directly above the Tower floor.

An air tube of substantial diameter exe tends fore and aft through the upper part of the ship, say directly above the passage on the deck, the purpose of which will be hereafter' explained.

The invention will be described with the aid of the accompanying drawings.

n the drawings, Figure 1 is a longitudinal outside elevation of the ship; and Figs. 2, 3,'and 4 are sections through it, taken at the line AA, BB 'and CC, respet-I tively. Fig. 5 is a longitudinal section of a portion of the ship; Fig. 6 is a plan vin sec 'tion, showing means of operating and controlling the ventilators. Fig. Z is a transverse view; and Fig. 8 a side view, showing the air. shaft, passages, struts, and a portion of the Ventilating system. Fig. 9- is a section illustrating in detail the system of frame bracing and Fig. 10 is a plan.

Fig 11`is a longitudinal section; and Fig.

12 a detail of saine. Figs. 13 and 14 show in detail vertical struts extending through the ship between the sectional division chambers, and the passages, and upper ventilating means. Fig. 15 is a side elevation; and Fig. 16 a plan illustrating the air'shaft entrance, and form of the bow ofthe ship. Fig. 1i'- is a viewvshowing the longitudinal and vertical air shafts; the front portion of which i3 Aa vertical view, and the rear nortion a plan showing the bifurcated discharfzgey conduits. Fig. 18 is a section through one of the frame members, showing the attachment of the outer water-proof `skin ,for sheathing. Fig. 19 shows in plan a set' of movable verticalwings disposed on the side of the ship. e

Referring to the drawings, 1 represents generally the outer framing of the shi/p; and 2 is a deck extending through the ship at about the middle, it being slightly oncave.

3 are the lower chambers existing between the diiierent lower sections of the ship, bencath the deck 2; and 4 are similar Achambers provided between the upper/ sections of the ship, above the deck or bulkhead 2; the chambers 3 of the lower half of the ship, being disposed at poins intermediate to those of the upper half of the ship.

As shown by the sections in Figs. 2, 3, and 4, the ship in general form and cross section is more or less of horse-shoe shape; and ther part of the hull between the two lower corners 5 is convex, that is, curved upward, the lower corners 5 themselves being wounded, forming keels extending fore and aft of the ship; and as shown in Fig. 4 a Water ballast tank 6 may be provided in each of them in the chambers 3, and also oil tanks for storing oil for the propelling motors of the ship. These tanks will give the vessel stability when lying on the water.

The keel portions or corners 5 may be provided with a sheathing S as shown in Fig. 2,

for the purpose of preventing the ordinary textile or like water-proof sheathing, from being damaged when landing.

10 is an upper passage extending between the bow and the stern of the ship, directly above and upon the horizontal deck 2; and 11 is a similar passage extending between the bow and stern, directly upon the bottom of the ship, and these passages are inclosed by a casing of light timber. These passages have sliding doors 12 in them, on each side, for gaining access to the gas envelop chambers through which they pass; and they also have sliding doors 13 in their roofs for the purpose of ventilation. And the doors 13 willlbe disposed at suitable intervals, and all connected up with suitable cords or connections 14 which terminate inhandles 15, in the chambers 3, 4, the cord passing round a pulley 16 at one end of each section of the ship. So by pulling in one or other cord or chain, the device can be opened more or less, or closed.

At the end of each section of the ship where a passage leads out of and into the Ichambers 3 and 4, there will be provided a transverse sliding door 17 (see Figs. 2 and 4) so that these passages may be closed at both ends as and when desired. And at these parts also, there is provided a tunnel section 2O which normally lies in one of the passages, and which may be moved longituaccess can be had to and fro, between the y chambers and the passage, when the tunnels are moved into position. Thus by these doors and passages, the various parts andy chambers of the ship may be put in communication with one another, or eut oli from same, 'whenever occasion for so doing may arise.

The air tube extending through the ship is designated 213; and it lies directly above the upper passage 10; and vertical branch tubes 24 extend through the chambers 4 from this passage to the top of the ship; and at the upper ends, above the'ships surface, elevating fans 25 are provided at their entrance, adapted to be worked preferably by electric motors; and cach branch conduit 24 has a throttle valve 2G in it, by which it can be closed more `or less, or opened. And the,lower endof these branches, where they pass or merge into the main conduit 23, are bent in an aft direction.

Within the tube`23, electrically, or other propelled fans (as indicated at 27, Figs. 5

and 17) are employed to assist the fans 25;

the one or other passage, or partly to the one, and partly to the other. By these means, according to the position of the valve and the direction ot' discharge oi air which leaves the ship, so will the ship be moved and steered horizontally.

As will be seen by Figs. 15 and 1G, more particularly, the nose or bow of the ship in plan is approximately parabolic; and vertically approximately hyperbolic; and the los apex or actual stem, horizontally, is tilted upward as shown in Fig. 15, and stands slightly above the central horizontal plane of the ship.

In the upper part of the ship, Ventilating shafts 32 are provided in each section; and above them are ventilator cowls 33; and these ventilating shafts 32 have Lin them apertures, governed by doors,` which are operated in the same manner as the ventilator doors 13 of the passages 10 and 11, and operating in a similar manner, so that i the gas envelop or ballonnet chambers outside the envelops and ballonnets can be ventilated andkept cool, and any escaping gases discharged.

In some cases, as shown in the drawings, air Ventilating ducts or shafts 35 may be provided on each side of the air passage 10, extending from the intermediate deck 2 to the shaft 23, for the purpose of extracting air gases that mayvnd their way upward around the as envelops under the deck 2- see. Figs. 5,? and 8.

Between the successive chambers 4, and

also between the chambers 3, the lattice struts'or columns 37 are provided, between the bottomof the ship and the deck 2, and the deck 2 and the roof of the casing 1; and the passages 10 and 11 pass between the side members of these struts at their lower portion; while through the upper struts the main air shaft 23 passes, and is supported by them as seen in Fig. 14. These struts not only serve the purpose of supporting the passages and air shaft, but also give vertical and general rigidity to the structure.

Propellers 40 areprovided into the lower intersection chambers 3, and they are ada-pted to be run out of carrier frames 41, through suitable apertures in the sides of the ship, and are revolved when outboard;

and when not required, can be housed inside the chambers 3 as shown in Fig. 4.

At the stern of the ship, another propeller 42 is provided; and .it is operated from a motor in the stern chamber or space 43, which will be suitably divided into several stories by decks, some of which will serve as gun decks; Vothers for engine decks; or 'for 'any other purpose as may be desired. The lower and' upper chambers 3 and 4 also will be provided with decks, 45 and 46, which may'serve as gun decks, lor living decks, and engine room decks, as may be desired; and communication will be had, one with the other by means of ladders. Bomb wells may `beprovided in the lower deck of the chamber 3 and fore and stern chambers and also in the floor or' the passage 1l,

.The water ballast tanks 6 and oil tanks 7 as shown in Fig. 4, are disposed below the lower deck 46 of these chambers 3.

ln the space between the intermediate horizontalldeck 2, and the upper part of the framing l, and extending between two of the chambers 4, there will be four gas envelops, two on each side. And, similarly, in.

the lower half, of the ship, there. will be four gas envelops two on each side between the chambers 3, and at the center point between each'pair of chambers where the gas envelops end there is a bellows .form of bag or ballonnet adapted to contain gas or air, and which serves the purpose of allowing for the expansion of the gas in the gas envelope; and also gas or air, as the case may be, contained in these bellows vessels, may be forced into' it, or let out, as occasion may require.

The gas envelops may thus always be kept at a proper tension, neither too great a pressure, or too small a pressure.

Thegeneral framing of the machine may consistof longitudinal members 47 of wood, provided with notcheswhich pass through and engage in notches in the vertical or circumferential members 48, so that the surface of these longitudinal and transverse frame members are lush; and the upper part of the ship, inside may be suitably boarded at 50; and otherwise-the interior of the framework may be covered with perforated metal, metal meshwork o'r netting, against which the surface of the` gas envelops rests.

Beneath the deck 2, there may be light timbering or wire or other covering 51 which take up'the strain ci' and prevent the envelops Jfrom bulging into the framespaces and stopping ventilation.

' Through the frame joints and metal angle cleats 53 of the frames 47, 48, diagonal bracing wires 54 pass, and they are gripped in these holes by set screws 55, screwing into holes in them, and so they are firmly clamped and bound; and this diagonal bracing strengthens the whole framing; and at the same time is very light. Furthermore, these braces 54 are bound together where they cross within the frame spaces, by clamps, as

seen in Figs. 10, 11 and 12, consisting of a lower plate 57 having a shank 58 upon it with cross cuts through it, down which the wires may pass, so as to lie in grooves on the plate 57; and the wires are' clamped in this position by a washer or plate 59 fitting over the Shanks 58, and held in position and clamped therein by anut 60 screwing over the shank. l

A cruciform key 61 (shown in Fig. 12) is let down into the slots in the shank 58; and one member, longer than the others, passes down through a gap on the inside of the nut 60', so that when the key is inserted the nut cannot slack back. Y

A detail of the Jframe members `47'and 48 is shown in Fig. 1S, and the outer cover 68 is secured to these; and where the edges of the outercover or sheathing of textile or like material comes, a strip or' rubber is inserted between them,.and their edges are clamped down by A'nuts 69 screwing over screws 70, screwed into the member; and a washer plate 71 is provided between the nut 69 and-the iso' . be employed projecting out from same, with their' forward ends lifted and their after ends depressed, as indicated in Fig. l, and serve the purpose as side keels and give 5 general stability of movement; and also on the outside of the ship (see Fig. 19) movable vertical'y wings 66 may be provided and mounted on vertical hinges at their inner edges, which serve as a means for assisting steering as one or the other set of wings on the opposite side of the ship are moved out and in.

Windows or ports will'be provided in the sides of the chambers 3 and 4, for observation and light, and training guns through,

l or other purposes, as may be desired.

Both frames 47 and 48 are provided with a multiplicity of holes 72 through them, for

l the purpose of roviding free access to the spaces inclosed y these frames, and so that ventilation all round the envelopsnand ship throughout can take place, anda free movement of air be provided for.

The outer skin or covering is air and waterproof, along the bottom; and for some distance up leach side, say about six feet, Where;

it is exposed to water pressure, a special protection is employed, comprising a double material with a light steel l ring netting pressedbetween the' double material, and

held together by a suitable adhesive.

By the. forms and sections of parts referred to, the ship is better enabled to resist pressure, and affords generally, a strong section, both as regards external forces, and internal forces.

By means of the various spaces and chambers, and the use of slidir g or the like doors, a's referred to, on each side of the chambers,

40 and .in the passages, air can be forced through into one or more of the sections, the sliding parts being adapted to close or open a passage as the Icase may be, when it is required to deliver air to any special chamber;

so that by this means, any of the upper o1* lower gas envelops may be supplied witha cool current of air. Furthermore, these vertical tubes connected with the lifting propcllers, carry olf the air moved by them,

rapidly, and so increase the efiiciency'of the lifting propellers as such. Y

. A'baft each junction of a liftingr propeller tube 24, and the fore and aft tubes 23 a-high speed fan 27 may be provided, for assisting in rforcingthe air along the fore and aft tube. By this air tube system, the propelling Aof the ship, and its steering may be very much assisted and promoted.

W ith regard to the compensating' ballonnets, these may consist of bags or envelops; and instead of being inflated with air, they are inflated with the same gas as is contained in the cuvclops; and should the pressure in these main envelops increase, theb'allonncts would be compressed and closed llonnets, hot and cold injectors may be carried, so that'the gas in these could be kept to the standard required; and they being Acomparatively narrow envelops, having a large area over which hot or cold gases au could pass, they would allow considerable expansion in the gas envelops.

1. In' a ship capable of being supported by air (and water) comprising a plurality "of sections containing gas holders, the com-A bination of sectional division chambers, la horizontal deck extending through the ship, and columns, as 37, extending vertically through the ship, and disposed at a point or points intermediate the sectional division chambers 3 and 4; substantially as described.

2. In a. ship capable of being supported by air (and water) comprising a plurality of sections containing gas holders, the combination of sectional division chambers, and a horizontal deck extending through the ship and wherein the gas holdersin each section have between them, a bellows gas holder; substantially as and for the purposes set forth. ,V

3. A ship capable of being supported by air (and water) compiising a plurality of sections containing gas holders, separated by relatively narrow sectional division chambers, and of the form substantially of a horseshoe in cross section, with the heels at the lower part; substantially asv described.

4. A ship capable of being supported by .air orfwater comprising a plurality of sec-4 11o tions containing gas holders, a horizontal deck extending through the ship, a plurality of upper and lower chambers formed by said deck, an air duct'eXtending longitudinally througlrthe lengthof the ship situated in the upper partof the ship, and columns ex tending vertically through the ship disposed at points intermedia@ the upper chambers and intermediate the lower chambers.

5. A ship capable of being supported by lao air or water comprising a plurality of sections containing gas holders, separated by relatively narrow sectional division chaml bers and of the form substantially of a horseshoe in cross section with heels at. the lower part and an air duct extending longitudinally throughout the length of the ship having means at its stern end whereby said ship may be steered.

(5. A ship capable of being supported by 1x0 air or water comprising a plurality of sectionscontaining gas holders, the combination of sectional division chambers and a horizontal deck extending through the ship, a tunnel directly. above the deck, and an air shaft extending longitudinally through the ship from bow, to stern with air inlet branches in it, an expanded and downwardly directed nose at the bow end of said shaft, and means whereby the entrance of air therein may be regulated.

7. A ship adapted to be supported by air or water comprising a framework substantially of the form of a horseshoe in cross section, waterproof covering for. said framef work, a plurality of sections containing gas holders Within said framework and covering, and heels formed by the lower ends of said frame forming longitudinallyv eX- tending keels for said; ship.

8. A ship capable of being supported by air or water comprising a framework substantially `of horseshoe form in cross section,

'a covering for said framework, a horizontally disposed slightly concave deck extendingthroughout the vlength of the framework, a plurality of sections containing gas holders within said framework, and columns eX- tending vertically through the ship and disposed at points within and along the longitudinal center line of said sections.

9. A ship capable of being supported by air or water comprising a plurality of sectional division chambers, intermediate gas holder sections, vertical columns` intermediate said sectional ldivision chambers, said vertical columns supporting an air shaftpassing fromthebowI to the stern of said ship, said columns open centrally and forming passages through said sections, and `a. horizontal deck approximately at the center of said ship.

1o. A Ship Capable of being slippoaed by air or `water comprising a plurality ofsectional division chambers, -intermediate gas.

of said ship, pas? the center of said ship intermediate said sectional division chambers, an air shaft passing through the upper half of the ship from bow to stern having vertical air passages extending upward through tli'e topl of said ship, and means whereby air may be forced through said main shaft and auxiliary shafts.

v11. A shipcapable of being supported by air or water comprising a plurality of sectional division chambers, intermediate gasA holder sections, bellows gas holders between f said sections, a horizontal deck passing through said ship, vertical columns' at the center of said ship intermediate Said Sec-K tional vdivision chambers, an air duct su ,ported by said columns passing through said ship from bow to stern and contaimng means at its after end whereby said ship might be steered horizontally;

In testimony whereof I have siged vmy name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses. GEORGE SIUTEERLANDDODMAN:

'Witnesses: v 4

SoMEnvmLn Geenen.,

JOHN' Tornare. 

